CEPI (Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations)

A new early-stage trial assessing University of Oxford's Bundibugyo ebolavirus vaccine candidate has launched in Uganda. The first volunteers were vaccinated yesterday with the investigational ChAdOx vaccine in Masaka City. The CEPI-funded study is conducted by the MRC/UVRI & LSHTM Uganda Research Unit in partnership with the Oxford Vaccine Group and Pandemic Sciences Institute, with the Serum Institute of India Pvt. Ltd. manufacturing and stockpiling vaccine doses. It follows a Phase I trial launched in the UK aiming to provide additional data on at the safety of the vaccine candidate and the immune response following vaccination. The deadly Bundibugyo ebola outbreak has now surpassed over 8600 cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with an infection also confirmed yesterday in Nairobi, Kenya. Dr Nicole Lurie, Executive Director Emergency Preparedness and Response at CEPI, said, "We urgently need a safe and effective vaccine that could help bring this crisis to an end." Read more in the press release linked in the Comments. 📸 Credit: MRC/UVRI and LSHTM Uganda Research Unit

“In simple terms, we’re combining a new way of delivering vaccines with AI-powered design technology. Our goal is to create a next-generation SFTS vaccine that is effective, practical to manufacture and easier to distribute to people who need it,” Professor Hitoshi Sasaki, an expert in pharmaceutical sciences at Japan’s Nagasaki University. SFTS, or Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome, is a tick-borne virus that kills around one in ten people diagnosed with it in Japan. In 2025, cases reached record highs – and there's no vaccine to protect against it. In Nagasaki, scientists supported by CEPI are exploring whether a new type of mRNA vaccine designed with artificial intelligence and delivered in an innovative protective coating, known as a ‘nanaoball’, could change that, and at the same time help the world respond faster to the next Disease X. ➡️ Read our latest Impact Story to hear more about the project, direct from the researchers: https://lnkd.in/er5k-vZX Also available in Japanese: https://lnkd.in/ekd9VBAa

New speakers announced for CEPI's World Health Summit panel discussion, From Crisis Response to Resilience: Innovating for Health Security Beyond Borders. Additional panellists include: 🔵 Dr. Florika Fink-Hooijer, Director General, EC HERA 🔵 Salina GRENET CATALANO, Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Director of Global Affairs, France 🔵 Prof. Dr. Muyembe Jean-Jacques, DG of Institut National de Recherche Biomedicale 🔵 Prof. Dr Charlotte Watts, Executive Director of Solutions, Wellcome Trust Echoing the World Health Summit 2026 theme, “From Crisis to Resilience: Innovating for Health”, this session will position CEPI 3.0 as a practical framework connecting technological innovation, cross-sector and cross-border partnership, and population-level resilience – and explore how investment in CEPI 3.0 helps countries mitigate the health, socio-economic and security impact of outbreaks. Date: Monday, 12th October; Time: 16:00-17:30 CEST Attend in person or watch the livestream. Register now: https://lnkd.in/eQrZda5E

“We don’t know when the next Disease X is coming – nor what it may be - but we know it’s guaranteed. We therefore need to leverage the world’s leading vaccine innovations, like the RNA technology that Imperial College London is developing, to be ready to rapidly respond to whatever may come our way.” Earlier this week we announced the launch of a new CEPI-funded trial of an investigational rabies vaccine that could be easier and cheaper to produce than existing vaccines, while also providing crucial insights into whether the vaccine’s underlying next-generation RNA platform can help to tackle future pandemic threats. The early clinical study, known as RAB-Vac, is led in collaboration between Imperial College London and Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. Discover more: https://lnkd.in/ezSdpUPE

The Bundibugyo ebolavirus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is the fastest escalating and second-largest Ebola epidemic on record. Yesterday, we welcomed US $5 million funding from the Fund for Science and Technology to support our efforts to advance a promising Bundibugyo vaccine candidate being developed by our partners Minapharm Pharmaceuticals, an Egyptian biopharmaceutical company, with support from ProBioGen AG. Over 8000 Ebola infections have now been reported across seven provinces in the DRC, with almost half of those cases proving fatal. Since the public health emergency was announced in May, we've been working around the clock with international health and science partners to respond to the outbreak. We are currently supporting the development of five promising Bundibugyo-specific vaccine candidates that, if successful in testing, could help to curtail the epidemic and save lives, while strengthening preparedness for future Bundibugyo emergencies.

CEPI's September newsletter is now available! 🗞️ This month spotlights continued momentum for CEPI 3.0, with $240 million in new funding pledged by partners at UNGA 81. It also features our latest R&D partnerships, new funding opportunities and lots more. ⬇️

As global health leaders ready themselves for this year’s World Health Summit in Berlin, CEPI invites you to join its official panel discussion, From Crisis Response to Resilience: Innovating for Health Security Beyond Borders. Echoing the World Health Summit 2026 theme, “From Crisis to Resilience: Innovating for Health”, this session will position CEPI 3.0 as a practical framework connecting technological innovation, cross-sector and cross-border partnership, and population-level resilience – and explore how investment in CEPI 3.0 helps countries mitigate the health, socio-economic and security impact of outbreaks. Confirmed speakers so far include: 🔵 Dr. Delese Mimi Darko, Director General of African Medicines Agency 🔵 Dr. Githinji Gitahi, CEO of Amref Health Africa 🔵 Hon Prof Jane Halton AO PSM FAICD, Chair of CEPI 🔵 Dr Richard Hatchett, CEO of CEPI 🔵 Dr Sania Nishtar, CEO of Gavi 🔵 Prof Dr Clara Schoeder, Institute for Drug Discovery, University of Leipzig Date: Monday, 12th October; Time: 16:00-17:30 CEST Attend in person or watch the livestream. Register now: https://lnkd.in/eQrZda5E

Last week in Kigali, Rwanda, we launched GS LEARN (the Global South Leaders in Epidemic Analytics and Response Network) – a CEPI-led initiative delivered in partnership with the Gates Foundation and Global Health EDCTP3. GS LEARN aims to strengthen leadership, technical capacity and collaboration in epidemic analytics and infectious disease modelling across institutions in the Global South, helping ensure that outbreak expertise can be rapidly activated when it is needed most. By strengthening locally led analytical capabilities and regional networks, GS LEARN will support faster, more informed public health action, scenario planning, and vaccine and medical countermeasure decisions. Setting the tone for the event, Prof. Claude Mambo Muvunyi, Director General of the Rwanda Biomedical Centre (RBC), reinforced why this capacity needs to be built and sustained in the Global South, stating that it “is not something we have to take as convenience. It must become a matter of sovereignty over our health security.” A point echoed by CEPI CEO Dr Richard Hatchett in his opening remarks: “Those closest to outbreaks should have the tools, partnerships, and analytical resources needed to guide effective response.” Over the two days, members discussed what success looks like for GS LEARN in the short, mid and long term and how the network will operate in practice across institutions and regions. From these discussions, a clear theme emerged: the strength of GS LEARN will come from the leadership, expertise and ownership of the regions it serves. Two years in the making, the launch in Kigali was both a celebration of the journey already taken by GS LEARN’s regional facilitators and implementing partners, and a moment to look ahead to the work, collaboration and achievements still to come. CEPI and partners look forward to welcoming more new members to the initiative in the future.

New funding opportunity: The BioPREVAIL x CEPI Biosecurity Innovation Challenge is seeking practical biosafety and biosecurity innovations to strengthen vaccine research, development and manufacturing during epidemic and pandemic responses, supporting CEPI’s 100 Days Mission. “Achieving the 100 Days Mission means moving at unprecedented speed without compromising safety or security”, said Andrew Hebbeler, Ph.D. Hebbeler, Director of Biosecurity at CEPI. “The BioPREVAIL x CEPI Biosecurity Innovation Challenge will help turn promising ideas into practical safeguards that can be tested and deployed in real-world settings, including where resources and infrastructure are constrained. We are proud to work with BioPREVAIL to advance innovative solutions from around the world that strengthen biosecurity and support the 100 Days Mission.” Three teams will receive a six-month accelerator, including up to US$50,000 in funding each, technical mentorship and access to global health experts, culminating in a showcase in Geneva in May 2027. Startups, companies, academic and research groups, laboratories, non-profits and consortia from any country can apply. Deadline: 31 October 2026, 11:59 p.m. CET More info and how to apply: https://lnkd.in/e8_2nVNM

We're delighted to welcome CAD$5 million in new, targeted funding from the Government of Canada to support CEPI's biosecurity programme. This funding continues Canada’s leadership in implementing CEPI's biosecurity strategy, ensuring the life-saving research we fund is conducted to the highest standards of safety and security. We look forward to continuing our partnership with Canada to strengthen global health security — and to secure the future, for everyone. Read more about CEPI’s biosecurity strategy: https://lnkd.in/exRt9RT5 Read the full announcement: https://lnkd.in/epFgF-hm Global Affairs Canada | Affaires mondiales Canada